Shockingly Twisted
by MrsPuppetEx
Summary: A rewrite of my story Shocking Twist in which Lucy accepts Laxus' demands she be his woman and he'll help during the Phantom Lord Attack! The first seven chapters are the same as the original except the end of chapter 7 itself has changed! Slow burn! [M for a reason] {FT owned by Hiro Mashima}
1. Chapter 1

*****DISCLAIMER*****

 _Fairy Tail and it's characters are owned by Hiro Mashima._

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 **A/N;** _These first 8 chapters are the same as the original!_

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 _ **I hope you enjoy this chapter, my delicate marionettes!**_

 _ **~ MrsPuppetEx**_

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"I'll tell you what," came the deep baritone voice from the lacrama, "I'll come help you if Blondie agrees to be my woman!"

Lucy sinks into thought as all of the guild around her gasp at the demand. She knew they their chances of a win against Phantom Lord without help from Laxus and the Thunder Legion were very slim, if there was any chance at all. She looked around at her guild mates and saw the stress that she had caused them, the loss brilliant in every one of these mages eyes.

She could do this, she thought. She had to for her nakama. "I'll do it," Lucy said, rolling her shoulders back and pulling her head up high.

There was an audible silence following her decision, no one expecting her to agree to such a ludicrous demand. Everyone, including the blond male in the lacrama, stared at her in awe. She had just agreed to something that would not only turn the tides of this mini war, but something that would change her life forever.

"Lucy you don-"

"I really do, Mira," Lucy said, interrupting the white haired barmaid. "If it means they will help us and you all will be safe, I will gladly sign my life away for however long he wants. Please, just help them," she begged.

The face in the magical communications device smirked, "Be there in about 20 minutes, my dear." The last word was said as almost a snarl before the screen cut off.

No one made a move, all too shocked at what had just transpired. Lucy had just agreed to belong to what was easily described as Fairy Tail's strongest, and likely most unstable, mage. Everyone knew that her word as a Celestial Spirit Mage was binding; mind, body, and soul. She quite literally just signed away the freedom that she had fought so hard to achieve, to save the rest of them.

"Lucy, we could find another way to stop them," came the voice of Erza. The redhead was visibly shaken, barely controlling her rage.

Lucy shook her head with a sad smile on her face and tears in her eyes, "My word is binding, you know this." She sat on the ground next to her friend and held her hand as tears streamed slowly from both females' eyes.

She just gave herself away to a man she barely knew. This was no different than what her father had wanted to do. Lucy shook the thought away, no, she was making this decision for herself. Her father had brought this upon her family, her nakama. It was his fault that this decision had been made.

Lucy quietly cried to herself, what have I just done?!

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Laxus was filled with rage when he walked up to the guildhall with his team behind him. "These fucking weaklings let this bullshit happen," he snarled, glaring at the destroyed building.

His inheritance was falling in shambles and it was because his grandfather refused to limit who joined the guild. Little cockroaches were constantly running around, waiting to be squashed. And it had happened, finally. "What a fucking embarrassment," he muttered.

"Boss, why are we helping them?" Bickslow asked, tilting his visored head to the side in curiosity. "We could let them be crushed and then you can just take over after that."

"I would have to agree," came the voice of elegance from Freed. He placed a hand over his sheathed sword, "We could simply let this battle run its coarse and then strategically pick up the pieces wherever they may fall."

Laxus huffed, that had been his intentions but the thought of having the blonde as his slave made him beyond excited. He hadn't expected her to accept his offer, he was just being snide, but, when she had, he was eager to scoop up his grandfather's newest charity case. He wanted to break her, ruin her.

"That grin is very creepy, Laxus," Evergreen stated, rolling her eyes behind her pink fan. The Fairy Mage didn't like this at all, she too was a woman, after all. The idea of being a possession was absolutely revolting and she had no idea why the busty blonde had agreed to her leader's demands. She must have a death wish, Ever thought to herself.

"Let's go get my prize," Laxus said, smirking as he walked down the stairs to the guild basement.

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 **A/N;** _Meep! Okay, no A/N's until after we're caught up to the new versions of the chapters! Lots of love!_


	2. Chapter 2

"You can't be serious about this, Laxus," Mira said, her tone very obviously disapproving as the Lightning Mage entered the basement. The fair haired woman stood in front of him with her arms crossed and a stern look on her face.

Laxus chuckled, "Oh I'm very serious. She agreed to the terms, and here I am. Now sit your ass down and shut up."

Mira began bristling with rage before a small hand touched her shoulder. The Take Over Mage looked down at the blonde who was in question who merely shook her head.

"Mira, its okay, really. I told you all that my magic is binding. Did you not see the glow when I agreed?" Lucy asked, looking around at her guildmates. They all nodded. Lucy sighed, "When I agreed, my magic became locked to my promise. There is no going back for me on this."

Laxus began laughing, the booming sound coming out in droves. This was beyond too good for him. He literally owned her _and_ her magic due to laws that came with her particular type of magic. Things really couldn't get better than this.

"Freed, how true is that information?" Someone asked from the back of the room.

The green haired mage in question thought for a moment before responding, "From what I have read on her magic, any contract she makes, whether it be verbal or written, are bound by Celestial Law and can only be removed by the Spirit King himself. The only other ways of coming back from the contract are death or the other party breaking the contract. Otherwise, the Celestial Spirit Mage's magic will become locked, effectively making them unable to ever use magic again."

At his revelation, the whole guild became an uproar and Laxus only laughed harder, tears welling up in his stormy eyes. Their Light had just literally made a deal with the devil that they could do nothing about.

Laxus calmed himself, taking deep breaths, "Well that's great. Now I'm gonna go get rid of this problem and then we can really get started with our new relationship, Blondie. Go home and pack, you're moving in with me when the Thunder Legion and I get done."

At this, Natsu, who had been quiet about this whole situation, growled. "Don't you fucking touch her, Laxus!" He screamed as he ran at the larger man, only to be stopped as Lucy stepped between them. "Luce-"

"Natsu, stop. You can't do anything about it and I'm tired of arguing about this. Just… come help me pack while they take care of Phantom Lord, okay? Please," She pleaded with tears in her raw red eyes.

Natsu sighed and struggled to control his anger and, looking at the rest of their team who nodded, grumbled, "Okay. I'm still not okay with this situation."

Lucy walked around Laxus and his team, leading her own team out of the guild and towards her apartment, not allowing her tears to flow until she was behind the door. She collapsed onto the floor as her friends surrounded her, sobbing uncontrollably.

Gray picked her up, walking to the sofa and held her as he sat, letting her mourn the loss of her freedom. The three mages hearts breaking at the sight of their friend looking so broken. When Lucy's sobs died down and she relaxed with a shudder, Gray finally spoke.

"We will do everything in our power to make sure you are not alone in this, Lucy. Remember you still have friends to help you through this, okay?" He asked while holding her face delicately and wiping tears away from her puffy cheeks.

Lucy nodded, "I know. He's just a jerk! I can't believe he's doing this. I'm just scared that he's going to try something…"

At this, Erza chimed in, "If we ever find out he has dishonored you in such a way, he will pay the price of such a disgusting act. The whole guild will not allow such atrocities to take place, Lucy, and you should know this."

Again, Lucy nodded. She stood, looking around, "Thanks, guys. Guess we should get to packing for my move…"


	3. Chapter 3

Lucy sighed at the knock on her apartment door. Her team had left and she knew that from the sounds across town that the Thunder Legion had defeated Phantom Lord. She opened the door and came face to chest with Laxus, the large man barely had a scratch on him.

Lucy stepped back and rubbed her hand on her arm sheepishly, not meeting the blond male in the eye, "I'm packed and am ready to go."

Laxus looked down at the girl, her sadness and shyness shown in the way she stood with her toes pointed inwards, her hand rubbing her upper arm, and her gaze staying locked on the floor. Oh how he was going to enjoy breaking such a pathetic and weak piece of trash. He smiled evilly before grabbing her arm and practically dragging her out of the apartment, stopping only to toss her over his shoulder when she struggled in his grip and ignored her protests that she would willingly walk if he just put her down and gave her a chance. He simply liked the feel of her small body over his shoulder, her large breasts pressing into his muscles.

He could only imagine the fun that was to come with her being his new slave that had to do his bidding. His body began to stir at the thoughts and he smirked before setting the woman down on his doorstep. She stood quietly and shuffled her feet again, he noticed her face was bright red whether from embarrassment or anger, he did not know.

Lucy stayed quiet and waited while Laxus opened the door to a large cabin home. The wood slatted siding showing age in the warm afternoon sunlight. The lawn was wild and untamed as wildflowers and trees did as they pleased. The outside was very quaint and Lucy actually thought it was very pretty, in a rustic kind of way.

Laxus led the way inside to a foyer that housed stairs going up and a long table. He showed her around, pointing out the kitchen that was open to a dining room with a very large wooden table with about twelve chairs at it. The kitchen itself was very modern and held shiny new looking appliances. He showed her the downstairs bathroom along with three guest rooms that seemed to reflect the styles of his team.

The living room held leather furniture and stone fireplace with a tiger skin rug in front of it. A large lacrama tv sat above the fireplace and two large bookshelves stood off to the side, completely filled with books. Lucy imagined that this would become her favorite room.

They made their way up the stairs where Lucy discovered was literally just a single bedroom with large king-sized bed and reading alcove off to the side. In the middle stood an aquarium with tropical fish that had Lucy gasping in delight before smothering the happiness when she remembered where she was. A large walk-in closet with one side blank led its way into a large bathroom that held a spa-style tub large enough for about six people comfortably. The shower was equally as large with flat gray stone tiles and glass doors. She imagined the water flowed from the obvious holes inset into the ceiling. She loved the top floor, it was gorgeous. Not that she would give that away.

Laxus smiled smugly, he didn't know why but the slightly pleased expression on the small woman's face was extremely satisfying. He had no clue as to why he wanted her to enjoy his home and the idea of it pissed him off slightly. He grabbed her arm and dragged her back into his bedroom. No, their bedroom, he corrected himself.

"Where is my room?" Lucy asked quietly.

Laxus snorted, "You're my woman, remember? Sharing a room is one thing that that is going to entail." He couldn't hold back his smirk at her stunned expression, of this was gonna be fun. "Now where is your stuff? Your apartment was bare and I know you probably have a fuck ton of clothes to put away."

Lucy took out her keys and summoned Virgo who swiftly brought about thirty cases from the spirit world. After thanking the spirit, Lucy dismissed her before facing the incredulous expression on the face of her captor. "What?" She asked, curious to know if she did something wrong.

Laxus snapped back from his thoughts and smirked, "Fucking woman. I should have known you had so much shit. You can put your clothes in the closet and the rest just find a place for wherever. Don't think about leaving without me because Freed already set up runes to prevent that. You have to be with me to get past the fence."

Lucy nodded with a quiet, "Okay." She watched as Laxus left the room and she began putting her clothing away in the large closet, thinking about how this might not be quite as awful as she thought it would be.


	4. Chapter 4

The rest of the day involved Laxus explaining the rules. She would be expected to keep the house clean, meals should be served at 7am, 2pm, and 8pm unless they were on a mission. She would be quitting Team Natsu and joining the Raijinshuu, no exceptions. She could only go on a job if it was with him or one of the other team members. The basement was off limits. She could see her friends at the guild and Erza and Levy were allowed over but Natsu and Gray were not to set foot in his home.

Lucy sighed. It was almost like she was a prisoner with all these rules and regulations regarding her new life. She knew Laxus would be controlling and demanding and she really hoped that she could break through this tough exterior. She was supposed to be his woman, after all, and not his slave. She sat at the table toying with the curried chicken on her plate and sighed again.

Laxus rolled his eyes, "The fuck's the matter with you, woman?"

Lucy looked up at him, feeling a little sad at the hardness of his voice. "Just… Never mind, forget it. It's stupid," She looked back down again.

"Probably is stupid, tell me anyways."

They sat for a moment in silence while Lucy got up the courage to ask him the question that had been eating away at her. She took a deep breath, "Just, like, why me?"

Laxus snorted with laughter, the booming sound filling the dining room and Lucy felt ten times more embarrassed by the question. He calmed himself after a minute and smirked at her, "You're blonde, hot, weak. Perfect for me. Why wouldn't I want something like that on my arm?"

The Celestial Spirit Mage blushed a bright red, this hadn't been the answer she was expecting. Actually, she didn't really know what she was expecting from the brute of a man. "Well if I'm supposed to be your woman then why are you treating me like a slave and prisoner?" She asked, tentatively.

"Gotta start somewhere. Once I know you aren't going to fuck up then maybe, maybe, we'll cut down on some stuff. 'Til then, follow my rules and you won't face punishment." Laxus said this with a smirk.

Lucy didn't know what to think about that idea. "Punishment"? The hell was that supposed to mean? She frowned while still toying with her food, this was worrying, to say the least. "He should know by now that my word is my bond and that I literally can't go against him," She thought to herself. She took a long drink of the wine he had given her and voiced this opinion.

His smirk widened, "Yeah, that's what Freed said. However, I'm still taking precautions until I know more about this 'bond' of yours. Don't want any slip ups."

Lucy had to agree, she should do more research on the matter herself. She knew a little about it but never had to worry because she usually promised small things and not something like her own freedom. Maybe Freed had some books on the matter, or the guild library. She would have to check tomorrow.

They finished eating and Lucy cleared away the dishes, noticing there was no food left. The man literally ate like a damn elephant yet was perfectly toned. She was surprised by the sheer amount of food he had devoured because it seemed too much like Natsu. He was able to eat as much as a Dragon Slayer and still be built when she would expect him to be soft. "Weird," she thought.

The first night was very awkward. Lucy changed into her stretchy sleep pants and guild shirt before crawling into the massive bed, scooting as far to one side as she could without falling out. She hoped dearly that Laxus would stay on his side. Sure she had slept in the same bed as Natsu and Gray but they were her friends and Laxus was… Well she wasn't really sure what he was. Technically they were together due to her agreeing to be his woman, but, he didn't treat her like she was his girlfriend or something. The man was truly an enigma.

Lucy faked sleep when she heard the shower cut off and moments later heard the large man walk into the bedroom. The bed shifted and she tensed a little when she felt a large hand on her back, expecting him to be rough with her.

"I'm not gonna hurt you, Blondie," His voice rumbled and she relaxed a little when his hand pulled away.

Laxus wasn't sure why he had decided to touch her but his instincts told him to try and help her to relax and that is the first thing that came to mind. He felt an unfamiliar pull at his heart when she stiffened under his touch. Sure, he was a complete asshole, but, he was trying to be nice.

They fell asleep and Lucy found herself dreaming.

She was locked inside a barred cell, chained to the wall. Naked and bleeding, she felt several cuts along her body. The smell of sweat and blood making her gag as she wept, hoping someone would save her. She looked over as someone entered the cell, he wore a dark cloak but his voice was deep making her know it was a man.

"Your father should have just accepted the ransom," He said. "But it looks like he really doesn't care about you, does he?" A dark chuckle made her shiver. "We'll just have to send small pieces of you back to him and make him rethink his decision."

With that, Lucy began to shake and cry. This wasn't how she wanted to die. She was only eighteen and had her whole life ahead of her. Her father never cared about her. No one was coming to save her. She was going to die. Lucy screamed as pain tore through her ear while the man laughed and laughed…

Laxus woke to the sound of screams, bolting upright in bed he realized it was coming from the small woman next to him. He grabbed her, shaking lightly, "Blondie, wake up!"

She didn't seem to hear him, only thrashing and screaming, "No one wants me, no one will save me!"

This wasn't something he was expecting to hear from someone who their guild seemed to adore and it stunned him for a moment before he tried to wake her again. "Lucy, come on, wake up. It's a bad dream, you're safe, I promise," The soothing note to his voice was new to him but he just wanted her to get over this so he could get back to sleep… right? Right.

Lucy awoke in an unfamiliar room, cuddled by an unfamiliar man. She didn't think as she buried her face in the crook of the man's neck and wept. A soothing hand was rubbing circles on her back and it was relaxing her. She jerked up with wide eyes when she realized where she was and blushed with embarrassment and shame.

"I… I'm sorry, Laxus," She buried her face in her hands. "I had a nightmare and ruined your sleep and I'm so sorry."

He 'tch'ed her and rolled his eyes, pulling her back to him. "Everyone gets nightmares sometimes and I wouldn't doubt you being stressed would cause it. This situation is probably stressful enough for you to have that happen. If you want to talk about it, you can tell me or I can have one of the others talk to you. Freed is good about dealing with that stuff, better than you would expect."

She shook her head stiffly against his body, he was being nice to her. Laxus Dreyar, no doubt the meanest person in Fairy Tail, was comforting her after a nightmare that woke him from a dead sleep. She breathed deeply and realized he smelled really good. Like a fresh spring morning after a stormy night. It was something so soothing that she wasn't expecting from the hard man who was so demanding and, usually, rude.

She sniffled a little and pulled away again, "I really am sorry for waking you up. You should go back to sleep, its 2am and didn't you mention that we were taking a job tomorrow?"

Laxus nodded, "Yeah. You good though? Don't want to be woken up again."

Lucy gave him a watery smile, "Yeah, I'm alright. I usually only get one and then I fall back asleep fine. Team Natsu never questioned it because they all were heavy sleepers. I usually had to deal with them myself."

This bothered the Lightning Mage for reasons unknown. "So this is a common occurrence?" He grumbled when she nodded lamely. "Well shit. I'll be here to help out if you need. I won't get any sleep otherwise and I really fucking like to sleep."

Lucy smiled, "Thanks, Laxus." Without thinking she leaned over and kissed his cheek. She blushed deeply and then rolled over back to her side of the bed, hoping he wouldn't say anything about it.

Laxus just stared at the girl, wide eyed. She was basically a prisoner and she kissed him on the cheek? Fuck this shit was confusing. He just wanted her to get at those weaklings in the guild but this was getting to be a sticky mess. He rolled over in bed and attempted to go back to sleep, his cheek burning from where her soft lips had touched.


	5. Chapter 5

Lucy woke slowly, becoming aware of her surroundings before opening her eyes. She knew she was in Laxus' bed. She remembered, vaguely, waking up from a nightmare and being soothed by the blond man.

She blushed when she thought about the kiss on the cheek she had given him. She was never so bold in her life. She just felt like that was the right thing to do at the time, she needed to thank him for comforting her… didn't she?

She shook her head and sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Today was going to be weird with everything that's been going on. It was her first morning in Laxus' house and she wasn't sure what to expect.

Lucy wandered over to the fish tank that acted as a wall, separating the bedroom from a small sitting room. The colorful fish were relaxing to her, dashing about in the large, enclosed area. They were like her, free but a prisoner at the same time.

She sighed and went into the closet, pulling out some clothing for the day and waited for the water to turn off and Laxus to step out of the bathroom. His hair was wet and he had a towel slung carelessly around his hips. Lucy blushed at the sight of his well-toned abs, water trickling down the bulky muscles of his chest.

She wanted to lick it off. Wait, what? She was horrified at herself and dashed into the bathroom, her face red as a tomato.

He was her prison guard! How could she have thoughts like that about a man who demanded so much from her? Sure, he was gorgeous, but that didn't change the fact that he was keeping her here, sort of, against her will. Whether they made a deal or not was of no consequence. He was the one who gave her the option and, seeing no way out, she accepted. To save her friends.

She showered quickly, the cold water shocking her raging mind into submission. She wouldn't let herself get Stockholm syndrome. The idea was always preposterous to her and she wouldn't succumb to such fantasies.

Lucy dressed in her jean shorts and gray cropped tank top, then headed for the kitchen. She was told to make breakfast every day and she would. She was a woman of her word, after all. Celestial mage or not, she never went back on her word, even if she could.

She quickly threw together a breakfast bake with bread, eggs, sausage, cheese, and potatoes. She was sorely hoping there would be some left so she would have lunch without cooking but those thoughts were ruined when the Thunder Legion walked into the house.

The three sat at the bar and watched as she washed her dishes, not one saying a word. She was bristling and getting irritated until she finally snapped. "What?"

The three jumped at her outburst before Freed regained his composure, "We didn't expect you to actually do this."

Lucy practically growled, "I would lose my magic if I didn't."

"Well, yes. We still expected you to choose that over being with Laxus," Admitted Evergreen, the fairy mage looking down at her hands in thought.

"You obviously don't know me very well, if you think I give up that easily," Lucy snorted.

She ignored the three once again to pull the baking dishes out of the oven, placing them onto a couple of rags to prevent damaging the counters. She pulled out five plates and set them on the table with some silverware and glasses of apple juice. She would have preferred orange, but she wasn't one to be picky.

Lucy set the now-cooled dishes of food onto the table and yelled up to Laxus, letting him know breakfast was ready before gesturing to his team to help themselves.

Everyone sat quietly before Bickslow burst out, "Hoy shit! This is good!"

The other two mirrored his compliments and Lucy smiled softly, "I like to cook."

Laxus joined them, sitting next to Lucy and making her jump slightly when their legs brushed. She flushed a pale pink and offered him some food. The man looked bored until he took a bite.

His stormy eyes lit up slightly, "Looks like Blondie knows how to cook. Thank fuck for that."

Lucy preened at his compliment more than his teams. Somehow, him being pleased with her cooking made her feel like things would be alright.

She cleared away the dishes and listened while Freed spoke about a mission he had found that would take them away for two weeks but paid five million jewel. Lucy balked at the amount but tried to act like it didn't matter, she knew Laxus wouldn't let her go on an S-Class mission with them and, even if he did, there was no way she would get any of the reward money.

Lucy sighed inwardly, it wasn't like she needed money though. She didn't have bills to pay or even food to buy. Laxus had that figured out. She wasn't going to worry about that kind of thing unless he said something to her.

My, how her life had changed in only two days. She technically was in a relationship, though nothing had happened to point to that. She was living with the man. Hell, she even fantasized about his body multiple times, not that anyone was ever going to hear about that one.

Lucy wanted to be upset, angry even. She wanted to throw a tantrum and destroy everything. She just didn't have the care to. She wasn't upset or angry or anywhere close to being mad. He hadn't really done anything to warrant such emotions from her.

So why was she so uncomfortable? Maybe because she was trapped here? Well, yes that was frustrating, but she actually chose this. Maybe it was the fact that it was far too close to being like what her father had planned for her? That was something else entirely. She would have been expected to have sex with the man if that was the case. And Laxus hadn't shown any kind of interest in anything like that, thank Mavis.

So lost in her own thoughts, Lucy didn't notice the other four mages waiting for a response from her. Laxus cleared his throat, "Blondie."

She nearly jumped out of her skin, dropping a glass on the floor, glass shattering everywhere. She stepped to go grab a broom she had seen in the closet and yipped when she felt something poke her foot. Lucy felt nauseated when she looked down at the blood gushing from the cut. She never was one for blood, especially her own.

"L-Laxus I…" She staggered as dizziness washed over her.

Laxus grabbed her and carried her to the living room, setting her gently on the couch. He held his hand out as Freed handed him a rag and pressed it to the woman's bloody foot.

"I'll see you guys at the guild in a bit, let Mira know we're taking this one with us and inform Gramps she's joining the Raijinshuu," Laxus told them, keeping his focus on the fainted girl.

His team acknowledged his orders and walked out of the house, leaving him with the injured blonde. Laxus sighed to himself, this woman was a fucking handful.

Lucy's eyes fluttered open and she took deep breaths, not looking down at her foot as Laxus wiped away the glass pieces. "I'm sorry," She said quietly.

He looked up, meeting her chocolate gaze with his gray, "Sorry? For what?"

"Bleeding on your floors, and passing out…" She looked away, embarrassed.

Laxus was dumbfounded. She had gotten hurt and she was sorry? She was something else, that's for sure. "Not a big deal, floors can be cleaned," He told her, grabbing a bandage from the first-aid kit Bickslow had brought before the team left.

They both sat in silence as he wrapped her foot. Lucy couldn't help but notice how soft his hands were and how light his touch was. The soft skin totally at odds with his gruff demeanor. She wondered what other parts about him were soft and gentle.

Would he be a gentle lover? She recoiled from the thought in horror. Seriously? What was getting into her? Give me an S, give me a T, give me an O-C-K-H-O-L-M. What does that spell? I'm fucking losing it!


	6. Chapter 6

Lucy followed closely behind Laxus as they and the Raijinshuu walked towards the guild. This would be the first time she was in the hall since her… well she couldn't really call it an "imprisonment", could she? She was kind of staying willingly at this point.

She tiled her head in thought and trusted the four people standing around her to direct where she was walking. Flanked by Evergreen and Freed, following Laxus, with Bickslow trailing behind her. They acted like they were preventing her from running. Not like she was likely to do that, though.

She sighed and ignored the sideways glances from the people around her. She didn't understand why she didn't want to leave. She didn't. Her mind was becoming jumbled. She should despise Laxus for what was happening, right? Right.

But she couldn't. She couldn't explain what compelled her to seek his affections. Maybe it was just the small amounts of care and tenderness he'd shown her. She'd grown up with a cold and distant father and wasn't used to men giving her the kind of attention that Laxus did.

Maybe she really was getting Stockholm syndrome. The thought made her sigh again ruefully. She knew better than to try and fight against him because he would easily overpower her. Not to mention the loss to her magic if she went back on her word. That thought made it all the more depressing.

No one would be able to rescue her and right now, she wasn't sure if she even wanted to be rescued. He hadn't really hurt her. He'd been nothing but good to her. But he was technically holding her prisoner because of a ludicrous deal they'd made.

So why was she so eager to please him? She'd worn clothing that she knew would make him look at her. She'd matched her pace with his as they walked if only to make him happy that she wasn't holding him back. Hell, she'd cooked a breakfast that she very much hoped he would enjoy.

She was seriously fucked in the head. That was the only possible explanation for what was going on with her. She sighed once again.

"Blondie," Laxus grumbled. "If you sigh one more goddamn time, it's going to snap what little control I have before I strangle you."

Lucy pursed her lips and made a mental note not to sigh more than once every hour or so around him. "I'm sorry," She said quietly.

They walked onto the land that held the beginnings of the guild being rebuilt. Lucy felt tears prick at her eyes as she viewed the damage that had been dealt to the guild because of her. She felt sick to her stomach with guilt.

A look that Laxus sent over his shoulder made Lucy stand up straight and gulp in fear. He looked upset about something and she hoped that it wasn't something she did.

Why was she worried about that? She should be trying to get under his skin. Fuck.

"Stay here with my team," Laxus ordered. "I'm going to tell Gramps that you're coming with us on a mission and to add you to our team."

Lucy nodded. "Yes, Laxus," She said in a voice just above a whisper.

The smirk she received had her breath catching in her throat. What was wrong with her?

"Luce!" Natsu yelled across the open area as he ran over to her with Gray, Happy, and Erza trailing behind.

Laxus' team stepped between them, blocking her view of her friends. "Laxus-sama has ordered her not to speak to you four," Freed said. "If she does so, she will lose her magic. Leave now."

Lucy saw through a crack between Evergreen and Bickslow as her friends walked away with their shoulders hunched. She wished she could talk to them and she should be angry at the decree from Laxus. She wasn't. Lucy huffed in frustration and sat on a pile of nearby lumber.

Loke walked by and looked more sad than ever. He sent her a wistful smile and Lucy was immediately concerned. Something wasn't right with him.

She called Crux to get some information and when she was told what she wanted to know, Lucy decided that she would need to give the Raijinshuu the slip. But how?

The blonde looked around herself for anything to help in her cause and saw Levy's team walking by with wheel barrows of sawdust. Perfect.

She walked by and Lucy Kicked the wheel barrows, creating a large cloud of dust. She took the moment to take off, following the way Loke had left. She was worried about her friend and Laxus had only banned her from speaking to her team. He wasn't a part of her team.

She made sure to take side roads on her way to the location Crux had given her. Karen Lillica's grave sat near a waterfall not too far outside of Magnolia. Hang on, Loke, I'm on my way, she thought with determination.


	7. Chapter 7

Lucy found Loke at Karen's grave. He was fading slightly in and out. She felt her heart break for the spirit. She had no idea how Leo had come to be in this predicament, but she had a solid guess.

She fought for him, using all of her power. The Celestial Spirit King had made an appearance and, though Lucy felt honored, she was angry. She fought for her friend. She fought for Leo to take his place back in the stars.

Lucy feared it wouldn't be enough, that _she_ wouldn't be enough. She was wrong. The King had reinstated Loke as a celestial spirit. She'd saved him and gained a new key. One she would cherish for all of time.

Feeling accomplished, Lucy made her way back into town with a large smile on her face. That smile was wiped away as she was met with a _very_ pissed on Lightning Mage. Laxus loomed over her and she found herself shivering and praying that he wouldn't be _too_ angry with her. She'd only tried to save a friend and it wasn't even one of the ones she was banned from seeing.

"How can you still use magic? You broke our contract."

Lucy shuffled her feet nervously. "I'd planned on coming back," She said, staring at the ground. "Our contract is only broken if I leave with no intentions of returning within a 24-hour period. It's only been five hours."

She looked up at the grunt and rushed to follow the still fuming mage. She was sad that he was so angry but she had planned on returning to him. At this point, she couldn't even be sure it was to protect her nakama and her magic. She truly did wish to please Laxus.

As they laid in bed for the night, Lucy fought with herself. She knew what was happening and was truly unresisting to the pull of her mind to the man who was, for all intents and purposes, her captor. She knew her mind was faltering and dared not to prevent such a thing from happening.

Lucy looked over at the mage who laid on his back, staring up at the ceiling. She smiled softly at him, he looked so dark and brooding. She could practically hear the wheels turning in his mind. He was planning something.

"Laxus?"

His stormy eyes darted over to her, sending a shiver down her spine. "What?" His tone was slightly annoyed. She'd interrupted his thought process. Mental note.

"What are you thinking about?"

He smirked at her. "Taking over the guild," His smirk grew when he saw her discomfort by his words. "By force."

Lucy chewed her lip, she should say something to stop him. But what could she really say? That the guild was her home? Her salvation? That wasn't really true anymore, was it?

No. Laxus had become her home in a matter of days. She knew the psychological break that had occurred in herself. It had effected all of her thoughts on such matters. All she could really consider was how to make the man happy and possibly make him love her.

What did she truly feel for him? It had to be the empathy that had made her bridge the gap between the way Laxus acted and how she had been after leaving the Heartfilia Konzern. She'd felt the way her father had been pressuring her to be what he wanted and the inability to change anything in her life for herself.

This is almost what was happening with Laxus. He was rebelling against his grandfather because he wanted the guild to succeed and didn't see that happening with how reckless Makarov allowed the mages within the guild to behave. Hell, they'd caused almost as much damage to the country as the dark guilds, bandits, and monsters they were hired to stop. That in itself was a reason to want to change the way things ran.

Lucy's mind ran a mile a minute as she worked through the possibilities. She was raised to run a business and running a guild appeared to be no different. There were many ways to change how things were to make the guild less of a laughing stock and more of an efficient, yet still family-oriented, machine.

Maybe she could help Laxus while also preventing an unsavory civil war from breaking out within the guild she'd come to cherish.

* * *

 **A/N;** _What do you all think? Is this version of chapter 7 better? I am going to keep it as a LaLu story after much consideration and this rewrite has begun from this chapter onwards. Let me know your opinions on the subject!_


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N;** _Okay! Here we are! The point at which I made the mistake of sending Lucy on some weird crack ship with Acnologia in this story. I've repaired that mistake and hope you all enjoy the new version of chapter 8!_

* * *

 _ **Lots of love, my delicate marionettes!**_

 _ **~ MrsPuppetEx**_

* * *

"You okay, Blondie?"

Lucy smiled sheepishly up at Laxus from her spot on the ground. She got up and dusted off the skirt that barely covered her ass and pouted slightly, "Yeah. He surprised me is all."

The Lightning Mage let out a snort, "More like he came directly at you, overpowered you, and knocked you on your ass."

"At least the view from back here was nice when her skirt flew up," Bickslow commented with a tongue-lolling grin while his babies flew around his head giggling.

Lucy narrowed her eyes at the Seith Mage, "Don't look at my panties, you perv!" She stomped her foot on the ground with her arms crossed over her ample chest in a childish show of frustration.

"Laxus-sama," Freed said as he stood from his job of checking to make sure the mages they'd been hired to capture were all unconscious and tied securely until the Rune Knights arrived. "Are we going to discuss that subject we had spoken of before."

Laxus hummed slightly as he leaned against a tree, "She already knows. Not like she can really do much to stop us anyways."

The Stellar Mage huffed as she sat down against the tree Laxus was leaned upon. "I think taking over the guild is a bit much if you want to make it less of a laughing stock," She mumbled, resting her chin on her knees and wrapping her arms around them.

"Oh yeah?" Laxus questioned. "Got a better idea?"

"As a matter of fact…" She said quietly but trailed off, unsure if he really wanted to hear what she had to say.

"You guys wait here for Lahar. Blondie is coming with me, I'm hungry," The blond male said, shoving off the tree and beginning to walk away.

"But Laxus-" Evergreen began but was dismissed by a wave of the man's hand.

"Don't care. We can talk later," He said, still not stopping from his long strides away from the barn they'd found the dark guild holed up in.

Lucy got up quickly and lightly jogged to catch up with the man. When she reached him, he slowed his strides slightly so she wasn't having to literally run to keep up with him. She thought that the sentiment was nice enough.

"What is your idea?"

She rose a blonde brow at Laxus. "You're really interested?" She questioned, not entirely convinced that she should say anything at all.

He shrugged, "Maybe I'm more interested in not having to hurt people to get my point across."

So he wasn't such a bad guy, Lucy thought to herself with a small smile. He just wanted the guild to be strong and take their jobs more seriously. She could work with that.

"We sit down with Master and make a game plan for when he is ready to retire that involves getting the guild out of the destructive ways it's become known for," Lucy began, knowing that this was the best way to try and get him to understand her plan. "We force all existing teams that rack up more than a certain percentage of destruction to split. They can still work together but under supervision of a senior mage such as Macao or Wakaba who will be ordered to report back if they sense something amiss."

She noticed that Laxus had yet to put his soundpods back in his ears and seemed to be paying attention to her words. That fact made her much more confident in continuing as they stepped into a small café in the town of Rosewood.

"So," She continued after taking a sip of the strawberry lemonade the waitress had brought her. "If the senior mage finds that he or she is unable to prevent the destructive mage or mages from damaging the surrounding town or area during a job, that mage will be put on probation."

"Probation?" The blond male's lip twitched at her word choice.

Lucy nodded, "Virgo has magic-cancelling jewelry that can be enchanted so only specific people may remove it. The mage or mages will be required to wear the jewelry and work only jobs that can be done without the use of magic until they show they can be trusted and have learned their lesson."

"And if they don't learn their lesson?"

She chewed her lip, she didn't like the only option her businesswoman mind had come up with for such an event, especially because it was mostly geared towards mages like Natsu, Gray, and Erza. "They get three months to prove they have learned their lesson," Lucy went on to explain the penalty. "If they do not learn their lesson in that time, they will be suspended from taking any jobs through the guild what-so-ever while their case goes under peer review of a board we will create of senior mages."

Laxus seemed to be listening to her intently at this point and had barely touched his food. He had to admit, her plan was pretty well drawn out. It was interesting to hear that she obviously knew why he would want to take over the guild in the first place.

"The senior mages will decide whether the mage in question will be given a second chance. If they do," She continued after taking a bite of her pasta salad. "The suspended mage will be allowed to return to their jobs, without the ability of going on jobs with other known destructive mages within the guild."

"What happens if the board, as you called it, gives them chance after chance?"

Lucy grinned, she knew he was listening and hadn't missed the fact that he seemed to be considering her words carefully. "They only get one second chance," She responded.

"And then?"

This part is what made Lucy frown. She really didn't want to but… "They will be removed from the guild."

"You realize that your old team are the most destructive mages in Fairy Tail, right?" Laxus asked her incredulously. He hadn't expected her to be so harsh in what was bound to be something he'd enact in a way when he took over the guild anyways.

Lucy nodded, picking at her food with her fork, "I know. They need to learn that destroying homes and businesses while on jobs, whether by accident or not, is not okay and can't continue to happen. If we're going to make the guild the best in Fiore, or even all of Earthland, this is something that needs to happen."

"We?"

She bit her lip and rose her eyes to meet the questioning gaze of the man she was supposedly dating. "I'm kind of stuck with you until you either break the contract, or I die. I'm not interested in losing my magic so… Those are my options," And boy did that not bother her as much as it did the day it had happened.

"Well," Laxus said when he'd finished his food and stood after tossing some jewel on the table. "Looks like we're talking to Gramps when we get back to town tonight."

Lucy's brown eyes went wide. "You're going to take my advice?" She couldn't allow herself to think that she'd talked him into it so easily. There was no way the hard-headed man was so easily swayed.

He shrugged as they walked back out onto the street in search of the rest of the Raijinshuu. "If Gramps doesn't listen, we do it my way," He said before putting his soundpods on and signaling to Lucy that he was done with the subject until later.

She was actually okay with him dismissing the conversation as he'd given her his undivided attention for the better part of an hour as she'd told him her ideas. The man was even willing to attempt to enact those ideas instead of hurting any of their guildmates.

Definitely some kind of progress, Lucy thought with a bright smile and a skip in her step as the rest of the Thunder Legion filed in alongside them on the way to the train station.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N;** _I am still working on this story! I promise! I have been working ten hour shifts or more every day at work and when I get home, I've just been falling straight to sleep! It's like I have no time to write! I'm going to try and make a writing schedule and put in for certain times off of work so I can have a bit more "me time" than I've had recently. Bear with me!_

* * *

 ** _Enjoy, my delicate marionettes!_**

 ** _~ MrsPuppetEx_**

* * *

Lucy sat with Laxus in the Master's office. The old man's mouth opened and shut a few times giving him the appearance of being a fish. "You want this to be enacted… When?"

The Celestial Mage smiled softly while Laxus gave a grunt. "Now," The larger man responded.

"And this is with the intentions of not only helping the guild but as a step in me handing the guild down to you?" The Master inquired, looking over at his grandson.

Laxus gave a nod, "The guild will me mine one way or another. I'd prefer it this way."

Lucy noted Makarov's brows draw together and rushed to placate the situation before it got out of hand. "What Laxus means to say," She said while waving her hands in a defensive gesture. "Is that he would prefer that you allow him to begin setting up the guild for the day you hand it over to him. We all know how destructive everyone can be." Makarov flinched and Lucy watched him eying a particularly hefty stack of papers on the corner of his desk. "I am also going to handle all of the paperwork from now on as I'm going to be taking my place as Laxus' assistant when he becomes master."

The quirk of a brow was the only sign of shock from the Lightning Mage at her words. He stayed silent but Lucy had the feeling that he would talk to her later about this. She hadn't told him her intentions of being his assistant in the way that Mira was the current Master's. She'd just taken that fact upon herself as, until she did more research on her verbal contract with him, she was stuck with him anyways.

Makarov nodded as he considered everything. He stroked his chin, "Very well. I will leave it to you two to set everything up and I imagine you will need time to consider which teams will be forced to split up as well as who will make up our review board." He hopped to his feet upon the desk and pulled out a file from a stack nearby. "This is the current roster of teams and if you need access to any of the files on everyone else, just let me know. I am going to make copies of everything and have it set up in the office just across from Laxus' so you might have space to work, Lucy," He said as he handed the thick file to the blonde girl.

Lucy smiled, "That works for me. I'll get started as soon as I have my office set up with everything I need."

With a nod from the Master, she and Laxus were dismissed. They walked out of his office and Laxus showed her the way to her own. The room was surprisingly larger than the Master's but had many boxes and was quite dirty. Dust covered everything and it looked like rats or mice had been chewing through the boxes of what appeared to be holiday decorations.

Stifling a sigh, the Celestial Mage brushed a finger over a key on her hip. Virgo appeared before her in her usual maid uniform and a gentle tinkling of chains wielding a bucket with soapy water and a box of cleaning supplies. Lucy gladly accepted the items and dismissed her spirit after denying her request for punishment, again.

"I'll have someone come up and clear out these boxes," Laxus' voice made Lucy jump slightly. She'd forgotten he was there with her.

Turning to the Master-In-Training, she put on a bright smile, "I think Natsu and Gray would be good options for help. Not together. I'll have Natsu clear out the boxes while Gray can do the cleaning. We're starting their reformation now."

The large man rose a blond eyebrow, "You're serious? You're going to punish your friends just like that?"

Lucy shrugged as she set the cleaning supplies in the corner, "They will have to learn eventually. I'll have Virgo get me magic cancelling bracelets for the two of them and we'll ban them from going on jobs together starting today."

She barely registered the small hum of approval from the man before he walked out of the room. Virgo appeared again when she called and nodded her head as Lucy gave her the details of what would be happening. The spirit disappeared and reappeared a moment later holding a total of ten bracelets that were silver with the Fairy Tail insignia emblazed upon them. They were about three inches wide and on the inside, Lucy saw the inscriptions for the runes that prevented the flow of magic as well as preventing anyone except Lucy, Laxus, and the Master from removing the jewelry. The spirit had also given her a book on Celestial Contracts which Lucy set aside.

"These are perfect, Virgo!" Lucy beamed at her spirit.

Virgo's usually stoic face wavered for a moment at her master's praise. "Punishment, Hime?"

Shaking her head at the masochistic spirit, Lucy set eight of the bracelets on a box nearby. "No, Virgo. Would you use some of my money and find me a desk, a couple chairs, maybe a planning board, filing cabinet, and bookshelf?" The blonde put her finger to her chin before smiling, "And possibly a box or something to store these bracelets in when not in use?"

The spirit bowed, "Of course, Hime. I will store them in the spirit world until the room if to your liking. Would you like paint as well? Maybe a rug?"

Lucy giggled, "You know me so well, Virgo." With that, the spirit vanished with Lucy's card in hand. The Stellar Mage thumbed through her book on Celestial Contracts while she waited for Laxus to return with her two friends. She hummed in thought at some of the basic principals of what kind of situation she was in.

"Are you sure about this, Lucy?" Master asked her as he, Natsu, Gray, and Laxus entered the room, breaking Lucy's train of thought on what she'd been reading in the book.

Lucy nodded solemnly as she tucked the book under her arm. "This is the only way they will learn. May I speak to them?" She directed the question at Laxus who gave a grunt. Lucy shook her head, "I'm nearly certain it must be verbal permission. Virgo gave me a book telling me everything that our contract entails. I will be making a more simplified version of everything that is included at some point."

"You can talk to them," Laxus said simply, leaning against a wall.

"Luce, I miss you!" Natsu whined.

"I miss you guys too," She admitted before moving her book to rest on a box and fiddling with the bracelets in her hand.

"What are those for?" Gray asked as he eyes the pieces of metal suspiciously.

"Well…" Lucy trailed off as her nerves grew. She knew she needed to do this for the good of the guild, and any towns the two destroyed. She just couldn't find it within herself to enact such a thing now that the act was upon her. Sighing, Lucy rolled her shoulders, she had to do this or worse things would happen to the guild. "I'm Laxus' assistant now and I'm going to be helping him and the Master get the guild ready for the day that Laxus takes over as Master."

"Okay but what does that have to do with those?" Natsu gestured to the bracelets, he was obviously growing suspicious of them as well.

"Part of a system we are enacting is punishment for those who destroy more than a certain amount during jobs…"

"Wait a second," Gray's eyes turned hard. "This new system seems to target mostly Natsu, Erza, and I."

"You guys do the most damage…"

"What about you?" Natsu accused.

"Blondie has never destroyed anything that I have heard of," Laxus challenged, surprising Lucy by stepping in.

"Aquarius has destroyed buildings!"

Lucy sighed as she looked at the raven haired boy she considered a brother. "Aquarius is not myself."

"And Blondie isn't going on jobs very often anymore. There is no reason to punish her when she obviously won't be using her magic as often as you two would be."

"Wait, you're taking away our magic?"

Gray's question made the guilt Lucy had felt creeping up on her increase tenfold. She knew they wouldn't see reason and this was the main reason that this system was necessary. She'd tried stressing the importance of people's homes and businesses to her old team before and none of them had let the words she'd spoken sink in. On the rare occasion that Aquarius or one of her other spirits went overboard, Lucy always stayed behind after the mission to help clean up and rebuild what she'd ruined, oftentimes also helping pay for the damages out of her own pocket.

"Luce! Why would you do that?" Natsu was almost shouting and fire cloaked his body. "We're your friends!"

"You two need to learn that people's homes and businesses matter as much as, if not more than, the jobs we are hired to complete. You will both be required to have one senior mage go along with you on jobs while you are under punishment and are hereby banned from completing missions as Team Natsu any longer," Lucy's voice had taken on a hard edge that came with her training as an heiress. She decided that the best coarse of action would be to emotionally detach herself from the situation completely.

"You're breaking up our team, too?" Gray was glaring daggers at the blonde and the temperature in the room was fluctuating between desert temperatures and artic chill. "How could you do this to us?"

"It's not her decision," Laxus once again stepped in. "I asked Blondie to do this for me and she is required to do so."

Her friends narrowed their gazes onto the older mage. "You're making her do this to us?" Gray asked.

When Laxus nodded, Natsu jumped at the man but was stopped short when a large hand grasped his body and held him in place. "Lucy, if you would," The Master nodded towards the entrapped slayer.

The Stellar Mage lowered her gaze to the ground as she walked over to the two mages. Gray simply held his hand out, obviously not wanting to fight what would be a pointless battle. When Lucy snapped the bracelet around his wrist, Gray lifted his hand and cupped her cheek, tilting her head up to look him in the eye.

"I don't hold this against you," He assured the silently crying girl.

Lucy gave him a watery smile and turned to Natsu who was struggling in the Master's grasp. When she reached out to place the bracelet on his wrist, his arm jerked violently, slapping the poor girl across the face. Lucy stared at him in horror as she held her burning cheek and fell to her knees.

Natsu froze in place when he realized what he'd done. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" He wailed.

A moment later, the Fire Slayer was out of the Master's grasp and held to the wall by a large hand around his throat. The sound of Laxus' growls filled the room and what looked to be scales covered the man's skin. "Touch her again and I'll rip your fucking throat out."

"Laxus," Lucy's voice was trembling in fear. Gray was holding his cold hand to her cheek and trying to stop the burn from worsening. "He didn't mean to do it. I got too close. I should have waited until we could calm him down."

Laxus' hold loosened slightly around the smaller mage's neck, "Put the damn bracelet on him then he can do his fucking chore while we get you taken care of."

Lucy stood with Gray's help and walked over to the deathly still pinkette who was still pinned to the wall by his throat. Snapping the bracelet around his wrist, she stepped away. "I need the boxes taken to the attic by you," She said, gesturing a hand to Natsu and not making eye contact. "Once that's done, Gray can clean the room with the supplies there," She gestured to the cleaning supplies in the corner. "Virgo will come back when you're done and you can leave once she approves the room."

The blonde walked silently out of the room, her hand cupped on her cheek with tears sliding down her face. Laxus released the slayer and turned away, "Remember what I fucking said." With that, he followed his assistant out of the room, the Master right behind him.

"I messed up, didn't I?"

Gray snorted at Natsu's question. "You're an idiot. She doesn't have a choice in what she's doing. We gotta find a way to get her out of this contract with Laxus." He spotted the book sitting on a box with eight other bracelets. Picking it up, he grinned as he read the title, "And I think I know how to do it."

* * *

 **A/N;** _Uh oh! Looks like Gray is taking it upon himself to help Lucy! Will he do it in time before someone stops him? Who knows? I know! And I'm not telling you! Yet..._


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N;** _Yayy! New chapter, finally! I had to decide how I want to continue as I want to wrap in some of the standard story arcs with what I'm writing, but things will obviously be different as Laxus won't be banished and there will be the fact of Lucy's idea on how to make the guild less destructive and ore of a pillar of the community. You'll see how I do this in future chapters! I have over fifty outlined at this point, just need to write them! Rest assured that this story will continue for a very long time!_

* * *

 ** _I do hope you e_** ** _njoy, my delicate marionettes!_**

 ** _~ MrsPuppetEx_**

* * *

The office had been cleaned up nicely. The walls were painted a muted pink color with white on the baseboards. Pieces of artwork that depicted representations of the constellations scattered the walls along with photos of the guild. A large cork board sat to one side with photos of the guild members posted along with details drawn from their files and a grading system Lucy had developed herself that outlines who would be immediately set to reformation versus who would only be watched closely.

Her desk and bookcases were made of light birch wood that fit perfectly with the light and airy atmosphere of the office. The chair behind her desk as well as the twin visitor's chairs were made of a deep maroon material and had silver colored piping that edged out designs on them. A box of no doubt real silver sat atop the desk which held the eight currently unused bracelets to which only Lucy, Laxus, and Master had the keys to and without the keys, would be impossible to break into. The final piece of furniture in the office was a deep violet chaise lounge where Lucy could nap if she needed to.

With hands on her hips and a large smile on her face, Lucy beamed at her maid spirit. "Thank you so much, Virgo! This is perfect!" She hugged the spirit who's stoic expression wavered a moment as she was embraced by her master.

"I am pleased to know you enjoy what I've done, Hime," Virgo said as she was released and straightened her apron. For once, she didn't wish to ask for punishment, knowing that her master had other things on her mind. "Have you found your book yet?"

Lucy sighed and shook her head as she walked over to her board, "No, I have no idea where it ended up at. I hope it didn't get burned with all those holiday decorations by accident when Natsu cleared out the boxes." The book that outlined all the details on her contract with Laxus was missing and had been since she'd been taken to see Porlyuscia that morning. She rubbed absently at the bandage on her cheek.

"Is it bothering you again?"

Lucy turned to see Laxus in the doorway, leaning against the frame in an almost bored fashion. His gray eyes shone with something akin to worry for a moment before it was gone. She smiled at the future guild master reassuringly, "It's fine. Just trying to remember where I left my book."

The man's brow rose, "You mean the one with silver writing on it?" When Lucy nodded, he snorted, "I saw the Stripper with a book like that earlier in the library."

The Stellar Mage's eyes narrowed, "I'm going to kill him." She walked through the doorway and made her way to the guild's library on the first floor with Laxus trailing behind her. Virgo took the opportunity to vanish back into the spirit world, knowing her princess would be safe with the brute of a man, contract between the two or not.

Everyone in her path jumped back as if shocked by some unknown force, fear on their faces of the deadly aura the usually perky blonde was currently giving off. No one dared to stop her or ask questions, they knew better than to do so as the look she currently had was the one reserved for when Natsu or Gray had severely messed up.

She stormed into the library and right over to where the Ice-Make Mage was and forcibly yanked the book from his hands and smacking him in the back of the head with said book. "How could you take something of mine like this, Gray?" She nearly shouted at the mildly confused boy. "You should know better than to take something that isn't yours."

Gray's eyes cleared as he looked up to his friend who was nearly steaming with her anger. He frowned and stood from his chair, his jacket flying off in the process. "I wanted to help get you away from him!" He shouted, pointing an accusing finger at the mildly amused face of the hulking blond who stood nearby. "I was looking for a way to get you out of your contract!"

Lucy's lips formed a thin line as she glared at her friend. "I don't care what you thought you were doing. Maybe I don't want to break my contract, did you think of that?" Both men appeared taken aback by her statement and she pressed on. "Breaking my contract, whether it would be through 'legal' means or not, would still be breaking my word. My magic is based on contracts and if I break my word on this, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself."

Realization lit Gray's sapphire eyes and he looked down, ashamed by his actions. "I just wanted my friend back," The admission took a huge bite into his pride, the boy never liked to let his emotions show, especially in front of who he considered an outsider to his inner circle. "You've changed since you've been contracted to him and we haven't even been able to speak in the past three weeks. It's his fault."

Lucy sighed and put the book on the table before hugging her friend close, taking in the fresh mint scent that was purely Gray. "I'm sorry," She whimpered softly. "I will be here at the guild every day, now. You will see me more often because of how things are changing. We're still friends, Gray. I just have to help with the things that will be happening with the guild or there is a worse future in store for us than me changing a little." She didn't see Laxus wince slightly at her words as her back was turned to him.

Nor did Gray, as his eyes were closed and he was allowing his friend to comfort him. He'd missed Lucy the past few weeks and he was basking in being in her presence once more. "I'm sorry, Lucy."

The blonde pulled away from her friend, sure she'd managed to soothe his frayed nerves and gave him a bright smile, "Don't worry about it. I'm hungry, how about some lunch?"

The trio made their way out of the library and to the bar where Mira smiled brightly at them. Lucy took her place in her usual seat, with the men flanking her. "Hi there, Lucy!"

Lucy gave the Take-Over Mage an equally bright smile, "Hey, Mira!"

"I see you have an office now," The barmaid started as she set plates of food and drinks on the counter for the three. "Why do you need an office?"

"Well…"

Lucy was interrupted as Makarov gave a shout from the bannister atop the second floor. "I have an announcement to make," He addressed the guild as everyone grew hushed at his serious tone.

"You're about to find out, She Devil," Laxus said with a snarky grin.

* * *

 **A/N;** _I want the whole guild to find out about the new order of things in it's own separate chapter as there will be many questions and arguments made against Lucy's plan! I want this story to last a while so may make it my Wednesday story as I have my Song-Inspired stories as my Sunday Story. Let me know what you think on that idea!_


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N;** _Okay! New chapter! I'm sorry for it taking so long, I've been dealing with life! I'm also kind of absorbed in new ideas that came to me and I've got like three stories in the works that I'll be pumping out once I close up "Ruling The Planets". This story will be a work-in-progress as I'm going to be doing my own version of the whole anime series of arcs. I will try to update a minimum of once per month. I realize I skipped over the "Tower of Heaven" arc and this is because Lucy is away with Laxus and the Raijinshuu during this time. Let's just say that everything turned out mostly the same, yeah?_

 _The next chapter will begin the Oracion Seis arc and it'll be much more simple with Laxus and the Raijinshuu (I'm just going to include Lucy as part of the Raijinshuu from now on, unless otherwise stated) being sent instead of Team Natsu. Erza will still be there, but Natsu and Gray will not as they are on probation! Okay, enough of that, on to the story..._

* * *

 ** _Enjoy, my delicate marionettes!_**

 ** _~ MrsPuppetEx_**

* * *

The guild was murmuring quietly, curiosity blooming among the mages at what could possibly be so important to put that stern look on their beloved Master's face. He looked almost worried and the anticipation for what was about to happen was beginning to get to the antsy guild.

"What's going on?" Erza asked as she entered the hall from her S-Class job that had lured her away almost immediately following the war with Phantom Lord. She looked at the Master then turned her disapproving gaze upon her guildmates, obviously searching for two mages in particular. "What did Natsu and Gray do this time? I must punish them."

Lucy blanched and rushed to her friend's side. She touched the redhead's arm soothingly, "It's not that, Erza. Just listen to what the Master has to say, okay? It's important."

The Re-Quip Mage's eyes softened slightly at the sight of her adopted sister and she gave a firm nod, "Alright. I will punish those two later, for they have surely done something."

"We're already being punished." Everyone turned to see Natsu and Gray standing solemnly near the Master on the second floor. The pinkette of the two had surprised all of Fairy Tail by being the one to speak and appearing to be relatively somber.

"That's right," Makarov began, sighing slightly and glancing to where his grandson stood near the bar with his hands crossed over his chest. "There are going to be a few changes. Lucy will be best to explain the details, but for beginners; Team Natsu is hereby disbanded." Shocked murmurs broke out around the guild and Makarov had to shout to gain the attention of the disturbed guild once more, "Silence! There's more." He waited a moment for quiet to fall once more. "From now on, any member of the guild who cannot complete a mission without committing a certain percentage of damage to the surrounding areas will have to wear a magic cancelling cuff and will be placed on a probation of sorts."

Mira was frowning behind the bar, "Is that why Natsu and Gray haven't been acting up today?"

The Master nodded, "Yes. They have already been placed on probation due to their excessive destruction while on missions whether alone or as a team. As such," He continued, eying his children. "Any team deemed too destructive will no longer be able to go on missions together and will be accompanied by either an S-Class mage, or a senior mage who will be in charge of completing a checklist that will determine when that mage will be allowed to have access to their magic once more."

Outrage filled the guildhall and Lucy shrunk back behind Erza and Laxus in hopes of becoming invisible. She knew that the new plan would cause anger with many, but she hoped they would ignore the fact that it was she whom came up with the idea in the first place. She truly didn't want to be an outcast within her surrogate family, that was one of her worst fears, honestly.

"What does Lucy have to do with this?" Someone asked from across the hall. The Stellar Mage sighed, she knew she wouldn't escape the spotlight so easily. Her guildmates truly were too perceptive sometimes.

"Our dear Lucy is the one who came up with this plan in hopes of reducing our destructive tendencies as a guild," The Master responded.

Attention turned to the busty blonde who was practically climbing over the bar to hide. She stilled and turned to the guild, shame filling her cocoa gaze. "I-"

"How could you do this?" Levy demanded, her words hitting the blonde like a slap to the face. One of her first friends within the guild was glaring at her with anger-filled eyes. "You've only been with Laxus for a couple weeks and you're already acting like him," She accused. Her words sparked more angered remarks from various guild members, all agreeing that Lucy was awful for doing such a thing.

"Enough!" Laxus' booming voice shocked each and every member into silence once more, no one used to him speaking up, let alone in someone's defense. "Blondie isn't the one who fucked up," He growled. "You will all follow this new plan or," The hulking male looked up to his grandfather who sighed heavily.

"Or those who wish not to follow our new ways will be given a proper Fairy Tail send-off," The old man finished.

No one moved. Not one word was uttered. Shock was written across each and every face within the hall. Makarov would kick someone out of the guild? The idea was preposterous. The last time someone had been forcibly removed from the guild had been his own son. Surely he wasn't serious?

Lucy took these moments to gather her nerves and pull forth her training from her previous life. She could do this. Squaring her shoulders, she moved in front of Laxus and Erza, the two watching her warily. "This doesn't have to be a bad thing," Their Light began. All eyes turned to her and she felt her stomach turn slightly but beat those nerves into submission mercilessly. Her guildmates needed to understand why this new system was being put into place.

"Does anyone know why we are so famous, as a guild?" She asked, looking each mage in the eyes. They all began to think but one voice piped up.

"Because we're the strongest in Fiore?"

Lucy nodded, "Yes and no. We are the strongest, but with strength comes sheer force. Does anyone know how much money in damages, on average, is done per job?" No one looked ready with an answer so she continued, "I looked at our financials and on average, our guild does over four million Jewels of damage per job." She saw several eyes narrow or widen and felt that this was the beginning, they were beginning to understand. She couldn't stop there, though. "Do you know the number one on the list of those damages?" Levy bit her lip but didn't respond and Lucy saw tears welling up in the bluenette's eyes, her friend was understanding. "Residential. We're destroying people's homes," Lucy explained, watching as realization dawned all across the guild, even Gray and Natsu were beginning to look ashamed of their actions.

"But… We do a lot of good," Someone else tried to reason.

The blonde smiled at her guildmate. "We do," She assured. "We just need to learn that although we may complete a job, preserving the people who hire us' lives is just as important. Sometimes we do more damage than the bandits, monsters, and dark guild's we're hired to stop. We need a way to learn how to control ourselves and keep from destroying the very lives we're supposed to be saving."

"She's right," Everyone turned to a dark presence in the back of the guild. Gasps were heard when none other than Gajeel, their newest member, spoke up. Everyone still felt wary about the slayer's presence, but no one could deny that everyone deserved forgiveness. "I heard about your guild when going through a town nearly out in Seven. The whole town had been leveled when a team came through to clear out a simple bandercinch. They were all living in tents and waiting for money from their claim. It took them nearly a year to receive that money and then another two years to rebuild."

The whole guild grew hushed once more. They hadn't considered that they were ruining lives with how destructive they were. As mages, they wished only to help people and they did it in the only way they knew how. If they couldn't do a job without destroying lives, what good were they?

Levy stood up, "I changed my mind." All eyes turned to the bluenette. "I think this new system will be good for us all. We need to consider others and if this is the only way, so be it." She turned to her blonde friend and smiled, "Explain the system to us and I'll be happy to help you with anything you need."


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N;** _I thought I'd posted this chapter and realized recently that I hadn't. For that, I apologize! I seem to already have pregnancy brain haha! I will be writing the next chapter over the next two days and will hopefully have it out soon, bringing us into the Oracion Seis arc :)_

* * *

 ** _Enjoy, my delicate marionettes!_**

 ** _~ MrsPuppetEx_**

* * *

Lucy sat at her new desk, reading over the file before her with creased brows. She'd gone over each and every mage within Fairy Tail's files in the past few days, dividing them into groups based on how much destruction they caused, trying to find a way to balance her new system out. She bit down on the pen in her hand after making a small note and leaned back in her chair, looking up at the ceiling.

Giving a light huff, she tossed the file down on the desk and stood, stretching her aching muscles. Several pops up her spine had the busty blonde giving a hum of pleasure and wandering to the electric kettle she kept in her office so she would have quick access to tea. Lucy started the water heating and turned to her cork board, studying the three mages that she'd already had wearing the magic-cancelling cuffs; Gray, Natsu, and Gajeel.

Gajeel hadn't been happy to hear he would be wearing the cuff but had given in when Lucy had pulled him aside to explain that it would help with how the guild saw him. They needed to learn that they could trust the man not to destroy everything as he'd already done, and Lucy knew that cutting off his magic for a few days would help ease the minds of everyone.

Natsu and Gray had both calmed down quite a bit since the big announcement within the guild a few days prior, neither fighting the new ways of Fairy Tail any longer and simply accepting the changes. Natsu had come to apologize for the burn on Lucy's face, but the girl being as kind-hearted as she was, had told him there were no hard feelings because she knew it was an accident. She knew better than anyone that accidents happened and that she shouldn't hold it against her friend for struggling to get free.

A knock on the door to her office had the Stellar Mage turning to see the large form of her fellow blond walking in, a slight scowl on his face. Lucy's guard went up immediately when she saw the irritation evident on the man she'd begun to get used to being around, her eyebrows creasing once more. "What do you need, Laxus?" She gave a slight smile as she moved over to her tea kettle and poured herself a cup along with a second one for her visitor.

"Mira said you haven't eaten all day," He sounded slightly perturbed about this information and accepted the small cup that was offered him as he walked over to study the open file on the cherry wood desk.

Lucy shrugged and sipped from her cup as she sat back behind her desk and quickly closed the file, moving it back to the stack on her desk. "I've been a little busy," She said, tucking the stack of files away in a nearby cabinet.

"You need to eat something, Blondie," Laxus said gruffly, capturing her attention as she turned to him with a raised brow.

"And why do you care so much?"

The man seemed to be caught off guard by her question and fidgeted slightly. Why did he care? It wasn't like he really was worried about her well-being, was he? No, that would be stupid. She was simply a pawn that was allowing him to take over the guild in a way that differed largely from the way he was going to before.

He shrugged nonchalantly after a moment, "Don't. But you're useless if you pass out from lack of food."

Lucy eyed him suspiciously, toying with her tea cup. "Alright, well I'm a bit busy and have some things I need to do before we head back to the house so I'll jus-"

"You're done for the day," Laxus said, interrupting her and standing up. He reached across the desk and grabbed her hand, dragging the woman to the doorway.

"Laxus, let me go," She pouted, struggling in his grip. "I just needed to finish some paperwork that came in and-"

"It can wait," He interrupted her for a second time. "We're going to get something to eat and you're going to shut the fuck up about it."

Lucy narrowed her brown eyes at the man then huffed, her shoulders hunching because she knew she couldn't argue any further with him about it or risk something happening with their contract. "Fine."

Laxus smirked smugly as he guided her out of the guild. He was beginning to enjoy making her do what he chose, especially when it meant making her spend time with him. Wait, what the hell was that about?

He shook his head inwardly at himself, his fucking mind was playing games with him, it seemed.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N;** _And so, it begins! It's another rather short chapter, but the next one is action-packed and will show my version of the battle between our new alliance and the Oracion Seis! It's going to be interesting having the Raijinshuu there instead of Team Natsu, no?_

* * *

 ** _Enjoy, my delicate marionettes!_**

 ** _~ MrsPuppetEx_**

* * *

"Okay, so why are we going to Blue Pegasus, again?" Lucy asked, hoping to gain some information as she made notes on the paper in her lap about details she needed to go over with Natsu about his latest job with Wakaba.

They'd been on the train for a few hours after having been ordered by Makarov to meet with other legal guilds at the Blue Pegasus guild for some mission. She hadn't been told any details yet, as Laxus had made her go home and pack immediately following their lunch and she hadn't had the chance until this point, having needed to go over the report that she was now closing into a file and packing away in a small messenger bag she kept at her side.

Freed sat up in his seat across the isle, seated between a smirking Bickslow and a pouting Evergreen. "We are looking into a group of dark guilds known as the Balam Alliance," The greenette started after clearing his throat slightly. "Most specifically, the dark guild known as the Oracion Seis."

Lucy nodded, she could understand why the Raijinshuu had been called in, then. They were the strongest mages in the guild and would be necessary to help bring down such an alliance. "Do we know anything about them?" She questioned.

Freed shook his head, "That's why we're teaming up with Blue Pegasus, they have all the information on the guild that can be obtained. Their Archive Mage will fill us in when we get there."

The remainder of the trip had been quick, much to Lucy's delight. The group walked up the pathway leading to the Blue Pegasus guild and Lucy's eyes went wide with surprise at the extravagant mansion that popped into view. It was grand and splendid, reminding her of her life as an heiress with the columns and turrets of the large building. A winged horse sat proudly on a flag above the door, signifying that they were in the right place.

Upon entering the building, the blonde noted that it was just as fancy inside as it was outside with marble tiles and gold accents everywhere. Four men approached, three dashingly handsome while one was… questionable, honestly. They swarmed around Evergreen and herself, grabbing their hands and kissing their knuckles as they knelt low to the ground.

"Hello, fair maidens," One with almost brunette hair greeted, a mischievous smile on his face. "I am Hibiki."

"I am Ren," The tallest one said, his skin a light mocha.

"And I am Eve," The youngest one, a blonde, greeted.

"And we are the Trimens," They said at once, bowing low with their arms crossed over their chests.

"I am Ichiya," The unsightly man began, waving his hands flamboyantly. "The leader of the team."

Evergreen scoffed and sent the man a glare when he approached her, folding her fan with a quick snap into her palm. "Disgraceful," She muttered in annoyance, making the man begin to cry dramatically.

"Are the other representatives here?" Freed inquired, scanning the room until he noticed a group of three striding towards them.

Lucy smiled sweetly at the trio, her smile fading when the only female, a woman with pink hair, snubbed her by turning away immediately. She sighed and inched slightly behind Laxus, hoping he would fend off the men who were still near her and Evergreen. If there was ever a time she was grateful for the intimidating man being linked to her, it was right now, honestly.

Just then, the doors to the guild opened and a small girl with blue hair came running in. She was followed by a white cat who tutted her when she tripped over her own feet and fell straight on her face. After standing up and brushing off her dress, the girl smiled shyly. "I'm Wendy Marvel," She greeted in a voice that made Lucy want to gush over the young girl. "I'm from Cait Shelter."

"They sent a child?" The boy named Hibiki asked incredulously.

"I'm sorry," Wendy said gently, frowning. "I know I'm not as strong as you all are."

"Don't doubt yourself," The white cat snapped, making the girl cringe. "You are only as strong as you believe you are, child." Lucy immediately decided she liked this exceed, knowing that, though she seemed mean, she was giving the obviously confidence-deprived girl the tough love she needed.

"Now then," Freed began, apparently accepting the child for what she was. "What information can you give us on our targets?"

Lucy listened intently, pulling out a notebook to write down any notes she felt she would need on the members of Oracion Seis as Hibiki ran through them. She heard him mention something called Nirvana and how they planned to use the weapon to become "free". She scoffed inwardly at the idea of using a weapon to obtain freedom and jotted down what few notes to be had from the miniscule information on the Oracion Seis members, tapping her pen on the page irritably at the almost empty page.

"So we're basically going in blind," She mumbled almost to herself.

Laxus snorted, "We've dealt with worse."

This comment drew her attention up to the man, regarding his hulking form as she considered his statement. From what she'd heard, they had, indeed, dealt with worse on their previous missions, having been S-Class. This seemed like a cake walk to the foursome, making Lucy wonder why anyone else would be needed for the mission aside from them.

She sighed slightly before following her new team out of the building, leaving the rest of their own alliance behind to search out the enemy. This was going to be interesting, for sure.


End file.
